Refrigerating tray



Sept. 15, 1931. M. K. BUCHANAN ET AL 1,323,187

REFRIGERATING TRAY Filed Feb. 18, 1950 INVENTORS ma? KBuvirano/r Ceo ATTORNEY Patented Sept. 15, 1931 MICHAEL K. BUCHANAN AND ALBERT G. HORTON, 0F NORFOLK, VIRGINIA BEFRIGERATING TRAY Application filed February 18, 1930. Serial Ito. 429,378.

Our invention relates to refrigerating trays and more particularly to those employed for freezing small cubes of ice for household purposes.

An object of the present invention is to provide a refrigerating tray havlng an'electncal heating element associated therewith for heating the tray sufficiently to dislodge the formed ice cubes so that they may be readily removed from the tray.

More specifically the invention contemplates a cube forming rack for refrigerating trays having an electrical heating umt connected therewith which is adapted to heat the various cells or compartments of the rack when it is desired to remove the ice cubes.

Another object of the invention is to provide a portable contact member or switch which is normally in circuit with the house circuit and can be conveniently engaged with contacts on the rack to complete an electrical circuit to the heating elements thereon. With the preceding and other objects and advantages in mind, the invention consists in the novel combination of elements, constructions and arrangements of parts and operations to be hereinafter more fully described, claimed and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein Figure 1 is a perspective of the inventlon, the portable switch being illustrated in inoperative position Fig. 2 is a horizontal sectional view of the ice cube forming rack;

Fig. 3 is a side elevation of the same and showing the portable switch in operable position to complete an electrical circuit to the heating element;

Fig. 4 is a vertical section taken on line 44 of Fig. 3; and

Fig. 5 1s a perspective of the portable switch.

Referring to the invention in detail a con ventional ice cube formin rack composed of a pair of spaced parallel longitudinal plates 5 and a plurality of parallel transverse plates 6 is provided and is adapted to be arranged 1n the tray 10 as illustrated in Fig. 1.

Arranged at the lower edge of each of the plates 5 and extending the entlre length thereof is a channel-shaped housing 11. These channel-shaped housings 11 are arranged with their open sides facing the plates 5 and the longitudinal edges of the end walls are welded or otherwise secured as at 12. The ends of the channel-shaped members are closed by end walls 13.

A resistance element is provided having a pair of parallel U-shaped loops 14 and an 1ntermediate part 15. Each of the loops 14 is arranged in one of the channel-shaped housings and extends substantially the entire length thereof while the part 15 extends transversely'between the plates 5 adjacent one end thereof and passes through elongated openings 16 therein. The extremity of each of the loops passes through a similar opening 16a in each of the plates and is ,extended vertically asdisclosed in Fig. 4. In order to insulate the resistance element from the metallic parts the channel'shaped members and the space between the plates 5 in the zone of the openings 16 and 16a are filled with a suitable non-conducting fiber.

A U-shaped plate 18 embraces the portion of the plate 5 containing the filler 17 and its edges are welded or otherwise secured to the edges of the plate 5. Metallic heads 18 are secured to the upper wall of the U-shaped plate and are electrically connected with the terminals of the resistance element. Each of the heads 18 are-formed with a flat upstanding contact 19 which has their upper edges bevelled, as indicated at 20, the latter being adapted to be engaged by a pair of 35 contacts of a portable switch, forming part of my invention.

The portable switch comprises a relatively fiat rectangular handle member 21 which is formed from non-conducting material such as bakelite. A rectangular member 22 also formed of non-conducting material is se-' cured to one end of the handle member by binding posts 23 which are connected With the terminals 24 of a conductor 25. The conductor 25 is preferably provided with a plug 26 at one end for connection with the usual house circuit.

As particularly illustrated in Fig. 5 the binding post terminates in rounded con- 1M tacts 27 which lie within transversely alined circular recesses 28 formed in one face of the member 21. The contact members 27 are formed with transversely alined. notches 27a which are adapted to be positioned on the Y bevelled ends of the contacts 19 as disclosed in Fig. 3. Transversely alined V-shaped notches 29 are provided in the member 21 in alinement with the notches 27a to provide clearance in order. that the contacts 28 may properly contact. With the portable switch engaged with the contacts 19-electrical energy will flow to the resistance element and in a short period of time the heat from the resistance element will be transmitted to the rack and tray and melt the ice cubes sulficiently to dislodge them from the walls of the tray and the cells of the rack. The cubes and rack can then be removed with ease.

What is claimed is: 1. In an ice cube forming rack, a pair of parallel partition members, a housing at tached to each of the partition members and extending over a substantial area of the same, and a resistance element confined in the houslng.

. 2. An ice cube forming rack having a plurality of cells, casings at each side of the rack and attached to the latter, a U-shaped plate embracing the edges of one of the end cells and located between the casings, contacts on the U-shaped plate, a resistance element confined in the casings and having its terminals extended through the end cell and connected with the contacts. and a non-conducting filler in such end cell and casings.

MICHAEL K. BUCHANAN. ALBERT G. HORTON. 

